Fourth of July children

Asheville Fire Department: Leave Fourth of July fireworks to the professionals, consider safer alternatives

Each Fourth of July, thousands of people, most often children and teens, are injured while using consumer fireworks. Despite the dangers of fireworks, few people understand the associated risks – devastating burns, other injuries, fires, and even death.  That’s why the Asheville Fire Department recommends leaving the fireworks to the professionals.    We are excited to [...]

firefighter self contained breathing aparatus gear

Asheville Fire Department to apply for FEMA funding to increase firefighter safety

  The Asheville Fire Department is requesting the authorization to apply for a FEMA Firefighters Grant of $130,910 to provide funding to purchase two air compressors to allow greater accessibility to fill air bottles used by firefighters during operation at a fire scene.    During their June 22 meeting, Asheville City Council authorized a resolution for the City [...]

Asheville Fire Department wins international service award for approach to firefighter resilience and mental health wellness

    The Asheville Fire Department proudly accepted the Community Service award for 2021 from the International Critical Incident Stress Foundation (ICISF) at their virtual  World Congress 16 conference held May 25-27.  The WNC Peer Support  Network nominated AFD based on our proactive approach to resilience and mental [...]

Asheville fire tiller truck

Asheville Fire’s dual driver ladder truck maneuvers through tight spots, features tall ladder

  Hey Asheville, have you wondered what kind of fire truck AFD’s dual driver ladder truck is?    It’s called a tiller truck or a tractor drawn aerial (TDA). This hook-and-ladder truck features a specialized turntable ladder mounted on a semi-trailer truck. Ladder 1 was purchased for $1.2 million back in 2019.  It runs out of the downtown [...]

Look ahead 2020 photo illustration

Look ahead: City of Asheville projects and initiatives for the new year

  Asheville residents can look upon the new year with optimism. Together, we’ve weathered a pandemic and a vaccine will be available this year. Even so, the City of Asheville’s response to COVID-19 will continue in the new year, in coordination with the state of North Carolina and Buncombe County.   Residents can look forward to advances in [...]

fire rubble

Asheville Fire investigators awarded FEMA grant for tools and protective equipment

  Asheville Fire investigators will have more tools to dig into debris to determine the origin and cause of fires under a FEMA grant accepted by Asheville City Council during their Sept. 22 meeting.   The FEMA’s Fire Prevention & Safety Grant will provide specialized equipment for AFD’s Fire Marshal investigators, such as mobile software for documentation (iPads), [...]

Silt removal on Town Branch

City of Asheville prepares for remnants of Tropical Storm Sally

    The remnants of Tropical Storm Sally are expected to pass close enough to western North Carolina to bring periods of heavy rain Thursday morning into Friday morning. Because of this, the National Weather Service has issued a Flash Flood Watch to include Buncombe County.  The City of Asheville is ready. Public Works [...]

AFD rescue truck and trailer

Asheville Fire Department joins Buncombe County search and rescue team on standby for Tropical Storm Isaias

  The Asheville Fire Department assembled a team of eight firefighters to join the Buncombe County Task Force 2 Urban Search and Rescue Team (BCTF2 USAR) on a deployment assignment to Kinston, N.C., for standby to assist in emergency support due to probable effects of Tropical Storm Isaias. Isaias is projected to make landfall off the [...]